Pitt Looks to Lure South Dakota State's Chris Bono

Chris Bono has already had one historic moment at Pitt’s Fitzgerald Field House.

Could more be on the way?

The reigning Big 12 Coach of the Year is scheduled to interview for the Panthers’ head coaching job, PA Power has learned. Initial reports had Bono headed to Pittsburgh on Friday, but by late afternoon it had shifted to next week.

Bono helped lead South Dakota State to a 16th-place finish at the NCAA Championships in St. Louis last month, with two Jackrabbits earning All-American honors, including 133-pound runner-up Seth Gross.

Success is nothing new to Bono, who was an NCAA champion and three-time All-American while wrestling for Iowa State, where he still ranks fifth with 130 career victories. He also had an impressive run on the senior-level circuit, winning national and international medals while competing into his late 30s.

After spending nine years as an assistant in Ames, Bono took the head coaching job at Tennessee-Chatanooga, where helped the Mocs win three Southern Conference titles in three seasons. They beat Big Ten power Ohio State twice in dual meets and had two All-Americans and 19 NCAA qualifiers in three seasons.

Pennsylvania Roots

Bono actually got his start in wrestling in Pennsylvania. His family lived in the Philadelphia area, and he picked up the sport at age 5. By the fourth grade, his family relocated to Florida, where he went on to win three state championships in high school.

Kolat’s Kryptonite

But it was a match after his senior year of high school competition that made him a household name in Pennsylvania. Bono was picked for the Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic, where he faced Cary Kolat, who many considered to be the greatest high school wrestler in the history of the Keystone State.

Kolat was 137-0 in his career and rarely had been tested. When the Jefferson-Morgan senior scored a takedown and two back-points in the opening period, it looked like more of the same. But Bono showed he was no pushover, with an escape and a takedown to make it 4-3 after the first period.

Kolat cut him in the second period to tie the match at 4.

Not only did Bono ride Kolat for the entire third period, but probably should have been awarded back-points or even a stalling point to win the match. Instead, the bout ended in a 4-4 tie that stunned the wrestling world.

Thirteen years later, Kolat was asked about the match in an interview with Intermat editor Andrew Hipps.

“Actually, Bono and I laugh to this day because there is a lot of controversy surrounding that match — about the back-points that were given,” Kolat said. “It’s always a big joke between us. We’re actually really good friends now.”

Pitt Stop?

Oddly enough, Kolat was one of the first names that surfaced when a replacement was sought for Jason Peters, who Pitt fired in January following some off-the-mat incidents involving Panthers wrestlers. Sources have said that Kolat, who is the head coach at Division I Campbell in North Carolina, has no interest in the Pitt job.

Instead, new Pitt athletic director Heather Lyke interviewed Lehigh coach Pat Santoro, who quickly reaffirmed his commitment to the Mountain Hawks, and Edinboro’s Tim Flynn, who shortly thereafter did the same to the Fighting Scots.

Lyke came under fire via social media and internet forums for swinging and missing twice on high-profile candidates. After scheduled interviews with Matt Kocher and Drew Headlee, who finished out the season as Pitt’s co-head coaches, she turned to former Army head coach Joe Heskett, who she knew from their days working together at Ohio State.

Former Panther in Keith Gavin, who just wrapped up his first season as an assistant at Oklahoma, was the next in line to interview.

The Bono news came as a bit of a shock when it first broke on Thursday on two accounts. First, Pitt had seemingly backed away from candidates with big-time head coaching experience. Second, Bono had just reaffirmed his commitment to the Jackrabbits.

“Listen, I’m here and I’m dedicated to these guys,” Bono said in a story published on Monday by takedownwrestle.com. “I got a special team and I got special kids, and you just don’t walk away from that. We are building something here and I want to see this thing through. We just had our most successful year, I got four out of my five [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][NCAA] qualifiers back, and a national runner-up.”

While he didn’t give a time frame, Bono certainly didn’t sound like someone looking to leave.

“I’m here in South Dakota, in Brookings,” he said. “I’m entrenched. My assistant coaches are entrenched. We’ve got families and I’m dedicated to these guys.”

SDSU’s Solid Staff

The assistant coaches are an interesting group as well. Like Bono, assistant coach Jon Reader has strong Iowa State ties. He won an NCAA title at 174 pounds in Philadelphia in 2011, and was a three-time All-American for the Cyclones. The Michigan native remains active on the international circuit and competed in the U.S. Olympic Trials at 86 kilos last year.

Schopp, who just wrapped up his second season as an assistant with the Jackrabbits, has strong Pennsylvania ties. He was a 2010 PIAA champion at Tyrone before heading to Edinboro, where he was a three-time All-American for Flynn. He went 133-17 in his career with 67 pins and was considered one of the most dangerous wrestlers in the country from the top position.

If Pitt was able to lure Bono away from South Dakota, Schopp would be an attractive option as well. Schopp grew up wrestling in the Young Guns Wrestling Club, which has grown into one of in not the elite club in the nation.

Pitt has struggled to recruit Young Guns wrestlers in the past, so someone like Schopp would certainly seem to help in that regard.

#GetJacked

Bono’s success hasn’t been limited to the mat, either. The Jackrabbits have received the Gold Standard award from the NWCA and Elite Level Sport Marketing twice as part of their Best of Brand Awards. Their “Get Jacked” campaign has been a huge success online, and Bono spoke about its importance in an interview with The Open Mat.

South Dakota State has ranked in the Top 25 each of the past two seasons for team team grade-point average.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]